


(Not) Waxing Philosophic

by elegant_graffiti



Category: In Plain Sight
Genre: Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-19
Updated: 2010-12-19
Packaged: 2017-10-13 19:32:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/140947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elegant_graffiti/pseuds/elegant_graffiti
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Marshall and Mary at the end of a tough day.</p>
            </blockquote>





	(Not) Waxing Philosophic

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shealynn88](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shealynn88/gifts).



> I tried to capture what I imagine would be the friendly banter inside the moments where Mary and Marshall aren't on duty, but still based on the job. Obviously, this is the result :P It's partner fic. I really hope you enjoy it!

Marshall sat with ice on his lip as the FBI car and the ambulance drove away. Mary sat next to him with her lips pursed.

“How is it fair that we have to do all the leg work, all the paper work, and they get all the credit?” she was glaring particularly evilly at the FBI car shrinking in the distance. “I could punch that guy.”

“Didn’t you go on vacation with him?” Marshall said, his words muffled by the ice pack. “Shouldn’t you know this about him already?”

“Yeah I guess,” Mary muttered unhappily. “I really resent paperwork.”

“Which is why I will end up doing all of it.” Marshall removed the icepack from his lip. “Ugh, I wish he could have gotten the job done without letting that scumbag junkie elbow me in the mouth.”

Mary peered at his lip. “It’s swelling like a balloon. You look like you got a bad collagen injection.”

“Yeah, yeah. Thanks for your excellent backup, by the way.”

“I said I was sorry.”

“You need to not talk to Faber while on duty because I’ll die.”

“You won’t die. You might get beat up a bit though.”

“So it seems,” Marshall rolled his eyes. “Stan’s going to be pissed. Our witness just got taken into custody by the FBI.”

“It isn’t our fault the witness decided to break the rules and deal coke out of his motel room to violent jerks,” Mary declared unsympathetically, waving her hand in dismissal. “The guy was a loser when he came in to the program. We both knew it. You said it yourself.”

“I was hoping I’d gotten through to him,” Marshall sighed, “He’s only twenty-five, he had so much promise.”

“Potential means nothing. It’s what you do with it. The guy didn’t really want to go into the program at the start, remember? And he’s been dealing drugs his whole life. He had the chance to start over and he couldn’t, it’s too bad but some people are just hopeless – ” Mary stopped her speech when she saw the look on Marshall’s face. She patted his shoulder. “It wasn’t you fault, Angelina.”

Marshall chuckled. “Yeah, I guess not. It’s still disappointing though.”

“That’s life. Let’s just get back to the office. I’ll drive. Your lip might swell over your head or something.”

“Try not to drive like you stole it,” he said, handing her the keys from his pocket and putting the icepack back on his lip. Standing up, he wandered over to the passenger side door and got into the car. Mary followed him and got into the driver’s seat.

“You’ve used that line on me before,” she said to him. “When you were mad at me about opening your mail before you got shot, remember? What? Did that elbow to the head rattle your brains?”

The tree branches the car was parked under blew in the breeze and their shadows danced across the dashboard. Marshall stared intently at them, as if trying to remember. “Oh yeah,” he chuckled after a few moments. “Right.”

“Yeah, when you were going to quit on me.”

“I wish I knew how to quit you,” Marshall grinned. His lip split and blood trickled out and down his chin. “Ouch.”

Mary snorted with laughter. “Good job there, Cowboy. What do you say we head back to the office, not give Stan a chance to make us do the paperwork tonight, and go grab dinner and drinks. I know a great ribs place you should eat in at least one time. I’m starving and we’ve earned a drink.”

“I think alcohol will sting my mouth,” Marshall said through a tissue that was sopping up blood. “Maybe I’ll just have a soda.”

“Jeez, Marshall, man up. It’s just a little vodka,” Mary rolled her eyes, put the car in gear, and hit the gas.

\---

Two hours later, the pair of them were sitting in a booth at Mary’s favorite ribs joint. Mary had a giant margarita in front of her along with a full rack of babyback ribs.

“Marshall, eat!” she exclaimed, pushing the plate at him. “If you weren’t going to eat any I would have ordered a half rack!”

“So you’ll have leftovers,” Marshall slurred through his swollen lips. “I’m not that hungry and it’s hard to open my mouth.”

“Are you still down about that loser? Marshall, there’s nothing you could do about the guy. He was a lost cause. It’s sad, but it happens. You know that.”

“It’s not him.”

“Sure it is, you’ve been sulking all day.”

“I have not.”

“Have so.”

“Have not.”

“Have so.”

“Have not – oh no, stop it.”

Mary narrowed her eyes at him, put down her rib, wiped her hands on a napkin and said, “Have so. But come on, what’s the matter? There are all these ribs here and you’re not helping me.”

“Have not. I dunno. Do you ever feel like it’s all for nothing?”

“Ribs are never all for nothing. Have so.”

“Have not. Not the ribs. Just…the job.”

“Have so. No. The job is what it is, Marshall. Come on, you know that. And what is with the short answers? Where is your philosophical nonsense that everyone rolls their eyes at and stops listening to after three sentences?”

“Have not. I don’t feel like being cerebral today. What’s wrong with that?”

“It’s not like you and it’s very alarming. Have to.”

“Being me is hard work you know. Have not – oh forget it, have so, I’m letting you win, you’re getting on my nerves.”

“Thank you. It’s good when you acknowledge I’m always right,” Mary said with a righteous little nod. “But Marshall, it’s not like you to question the job, or mope over some lowlife or not eat ribs. You’re much tougher than that. I’ve seen you bounce back from that stuff real easy. Now do you have a real problem or are you being annoying on purpose?”

Marshall picked up a rib off the plate between them. “Fine. I’ll eat ribs. Are you happy?”

“I’d be happier if you just told me what was wrong instead of annoying me by not telling me. This is what thirteen year old girls do.”

“You were a thirteen year old girl once,” Marshall pointed out.

Mary shook her head. “No I wasn’t. If I can’t deny it, I plead the fifth. But how good are the ribs?” she asked as Marshall took a bite.

“They’re good. They’re always good, I’ve been here before.”

“You have?”

“Yeah. You brought me here once years ago. I’ve come back a few times.”

“Jesus, Marshall, I thought I was bringing you somewhere new. Way to make me look like an ass.”

“You don’t really need my help much,” he chuckled.

“Don’t make me mad, I’ll hit you,” Mary threatened. “You think your lips are swollen now…”

“You’re all talk,” he nodded. Mary sulked a little bit. Still chuckling, Marshall took a swig of his drink. “Ouch.”

“What?”

“Alcohol stings the swollen, split lips that junkie gave me while you argued with your boyfriend about the witness.” He pointed to his lips. “You told them to add rum to this when I went to the bathroom to wash my hands, didn’t you?”

“Actually it was Jack Daniels. And he isn’t my boyfriend,” Mary said defensively. “The whiskey will be good for you. And at least the swelling has gone down a bit. You looked like you were making out with a vacuum cleaner.”

“How do you know what that looks like?” Marshall asked with a grin.

Mary glared at him. “None of your business.”

“You did it, didn’t you?”

“No.”

“You did.”

Mary threw her hands down on the table. “Okay fine. It was sixth grade and I was trying to fit in and make it look like I had a boyfriend – stop looking so gleeful!” she demanded as Marshall laughed into his napkin.

“Sorry, it’s just…hilarious,” he grinned at her. His smile looked slightly warped because of his swollen mouth. He took another bite of his meal and Mary picked up her own food again.

There was quiet for a bit while they ate. Mary moved on to her second margarita. Marshall managed to get through half his Jack and coke.

“I don’t know,” Marshall said with sigh, and Mary looked up curiously. “It’s just sometimes it gets so repetitive. Bastard after bastard, day after day. I really thought that kid could change. He seemed to want to.”

Mary bit her lip thoughtfully before speaking. She was gentler with her best friend than she was with most people. “Sometimes they can. And you know as well as I do that it’s not about the bad guys, it’s about the good guys. We deal with the scum of the Earth who get our help even though they haven’t earned it, but we also get to help the people who need it and truly deserve it. Those are the ones you should focus on. And you do a lot of good work. Much more than me,” she laughed a little bit. “You get through to people I’d never reach. I’d just beat them up.”

He nodded. “That’s true. People do like me better.”

“That’s not what I said…but it is true, yeah,” she acknowledged with a little nod. “Listen, don’t let this kid get you down, huh? It’s just one kid. There will be a new one tomorrow – maybe one who didn’t deal drugs and is scared and needs a role model like you to look up to. God knows I’m not a role model for anyone.”

Marshall chuckled. “Yeah, that’s true. Tomorrow is another day.”

“I’ve heard that somewhere.”

“Gone with the Wind.”

“You know, Marshall, sometimes I think I’m the man and you’re the chick in this relationship.”

The check came. Marshall looked at it and took out his wallet. Silence reigned again. Mary took a sip of her drink. “I owe you half,” she said. “But you’re such a lightweight, you know that? Half a drink and that’s all it takes for you to spill your guts.”

The waitress took the check and Marshall’s credit card. Marshall looked at Mary. “False,” he said, “You’ve been bugging me to tell you what’s wrong for the last three hours.”

“And it didn’t happen until I spiked your drink. What’s that about?”

“It’s about my trust in our relationship.”

“It’s about you being a pansy,” Mary nodded seriously. Marshall rolled his eyes. The waitress dropped the check back at the table. Marshall added a tip – six dollars – signed it, and put it back into his wallet. Mary finished her drink.

“You ready to go, you lush?” he asked as Mary sucked the bottom of her glass dry through her straw.

“Yeah,” she said. She stood up and teetered a bit. “Whoa. You better drive.” She took his keys out of her jacket pocket and tossed them to him.

Marshall caught them and they started towards the front of the restaurant. “What was it you were saying about me being a lightweight?”

“Hey, I drank a lot more than you did and I haven’t told you any of my deep dark secrets,” Mary waved her hand dismissively.

Marshall held the door. “Neither did I, I was waxing philosophical.”

“You wax?” Mary teased, passing him out into the dark. “Is that how you get that baby bottom smooth face?”

“No, I don’t, but you should try it,” Marshall teased back as he stepped outside.

The door closed quietly behind them.


End file.
